Defenders Magazine

How to Act Cool

Think you can't do anything to stop global warming? Think again.

By Heidi Ridgley

© Corbis

Commuting by bicycle, using energy-efficient
light bulbs, buying electricity from alternative-
energy suppliers and eating lower on the food
chain really can change the world.

Liz Cohen doesn't just drive to the office each morning. As a hospice-care social worker living in Princeton, New Jersey, her day is a constant commute from one patient's home to another. Driving up to 60 miles a week, Cohen knows she spews her share of climate-changing tailpipe emissions along the way. But she's found a way to offset her contribution to global warming: an automatic, tax-deductible payment via her credit card each month to Carbonfund.org, a nonprofit that invests in renewable energy projects.

Cohen and other Americans contribute nearly 25 percent of the world's global-warming emissions, even though the United States has only 4 percent of the world's population. Almost half of those emissions come from the burning of fossil fuels to power our cars, trucks, planes, homes and offices. While it's impossible to zero out our carbon emissions completely, by participating in programs such as those offered by Carbonfund.org or Better World Club, an environmentally responsible travel and roadside assistance company, concerned citizens can reduce significantly their ‘carbon footprint.'

Using simple calculators available on the groups' Web sites, you can determine how much carbon dioxide is generated by your car, in your home or even while traveling on an airplane, and translate this into a dollar amount. Offsetting your carbon emissions completely--the average American is responsible for more than 20 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, according to the U.S. Department of Energy--would cost a tax- deductible $99 a year with Carbonfund.org.

With the money you provide, the companies invest in renewable energy projects that lower emissions by an equal amount. In Chicago, for example, this money is used to pay for solar panels on low-income housing, which reduces residents' reliance on polluting coal-fired power plants. Participants can also opt to have their money directed toward the Chicago Climate Exchange--a sort of stock market for pollution--to buy and retire industry emission credits that would otherwise allow companies to spew additional carbon dioxide.

Does her annual contribution get Cohen off the hook? "No," she admits. "But it does help me feel better about driving if I can balance out my lifestyle needs in some way."

Besides paying your climate dues, here are some additional steps you can take:

Buy green power. Check out the Department of Energy's green-pricing page to find out options in your area. Today, about 75 million people in 42 states have the opportunity to buy electricity from alternative-energy suppliers.

Retire your car. Or at least give it a day off. Every gallon of gasoline saved keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. Leaving your car home two days a week can reduce your climate impact by 1,590 pounds a year.

Speak out for better fuel economy standards. Ford Model Ts got about 25 miles per gallon--more than many of today's vehicles. If all U.S. vehicles averaged 40 miles per gallon, it would cut global warming emissions by 600 million tons a year. Write your representatives.

Buy good wood. When forests are managed in a sustainable manner, it does more than protect wildlife. The trees left behind and the less-disturbed soils store carbon. Look for the FSC logo on wood. It means the product you're buying is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as responsibly grown and harvested.

Light bulbs matter. So do your thermostat and washing machine. Yearly carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced by: replacing a regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent (150 pounds), lowering the thermostat two degrees in the winter (2,000 pounds) and washing clothes in cold water (500 pounds).

Buy organic food. The chemicals used in modern agriculture not only pollute the water, they require energy to produce. Buying locally to cut down on transportation and eating lower on the food chain also helps. For example, meat production uses six to 20 times more fossil fuels than soybean production, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Welcome wildlife into your garden. You can help creatures adapt to shifting habitats by planting native, pollen-rich plants for bees and butterflies, creating bogs and ponds for amphibians and insect-eating bats, and providing berry-producing plants for birds.

Don't wait for Washington. "If enough people make some small and easy changes, we may be able to slow down climate change," says a hopeful Cohen. "I am terrified by what I've seen in just the last year--melting ice caps, sinking islands and level-five hurricanes. It's time for some urgent measures."

Given the current administration's refusal to act, she says she's looking to local governments to address climate change and to families like hers who understand it's time to take heed.

"We're not a family of activists but we do the best we can to make a difference," says Cohen. "I've tried to instill in my kids that when I have to drive them to school because they're late and they miss the bus, they're having an impact on more than my time."

Is it working? "We're now living in virtual darkness because my teenager is always turning off the lights in the house," she jokes. "I'm thrilled he's ‘getting it' but sometimes I do need to see to get dressed in the morning."

For more energy-saving tips, visit www.fightglobalwarming.com and www.stopglobalwarming.org. To find out how much carbon dioxide you emit, use one of the many carbon calculators on the Internet at sites such as www.carbonfund.org, www.driveneutral.com or www.terrapass.com.